- he spoke about acts that he had seen in pornographic films involving such matters as women having sex with animals. - this seemingly personal matter is being aired out in front of this jury of all white men, and it created a spectacle. - this is a circus, and from my standpoint as a black american, as far as i'm concerned, it is a high-tech lynching for uppity blacks. - clarence thomas decided to fight back by evoking one of the most painful elements of black history, which was designed to point out the burden of being black. - the final count was 52 to 48. it's the closest successful confirmation vote in supreme court history. - no matter how difficult or how painful the process has been, this is a time for healing in our country. - it's not exactly a rage, but it's definitely a much-noted trend, a whole new wave of black films